Fire-alarm



NI-TED ST TES PATENT Fries.

EUGENE P. MCCASLIN, OF TULLAHOMA, TENNESSEE.

FIRE-ALARM.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 530,790, dated December1 1,1894.

Application filed August 6, 1 8 94- To all whom it may concern:

, Be it known that I, EUGENE P. MoGAs LIN, of Tullahoma, in the countyof Coffee and State of Tennessee, have invented a new and ImprovedFire-Alarm, of which the following is a full, clear, and exactdescription.

My invention relates to improvements in fire alarms; and the object ofmy invention is to produce an alarm which is very simple and cheap inconstruction, is particularly adapted for use in hotels or largeresidence buildings, and which is adapted, in case a fire breaks out inany part of the building, to at once sound in all the other parts of thebuilding, thus thoroughly arousing everybody in the building so thatthey may escape in safety.

A further object of my invention is to produce a device which is notdependent on electrical circuits, but which is adapted to operatepositively in case of fire and cannot, by any accident, get out oforder.

To these ends my invention consists of certain features of constructionand combinations of parts, which will be hereinafter described andclaimed.

\ Referenceis to be had to the accompanying drawings, forming a part ofthis specification, in which similar figures of reference indicatecorresponding parts in all the views.

Figure 1 is a perspective view of a portion of the improved system asapplied to a room. Fig. 2 is a sectional elevation, showing theapparatus applied to several adjacent rooms of a building. Fig. 3 is anenlarged detail view of the trip which is moved in case of fire andcauses an alarm to be rung; and Fig.4 is a broken detail sectional view,showing a form of alarm, well adapted for use in connection with myimproved system.

In carrying out my invention, a combustible cord 10, preferably of silk,is secured to a peg, staple, or similar device 11 and is run around theceiling or wall, as the case may be, over guide pulleys 12 andpreferably near a the corners of the room, and finally, over a pulley 13and is attached to a pendent weight 14 which holds the cord taut andwhich is supported by it, while to the weight is also attached anothernon-combustible cord 15 which also extends over the pulley 13 and isattached to the lower end of a tripping lever 16, the upper end 16 ofwhich engages a hook Serial No. 519,570. (No model.)

wire 20 which, when separated, is adapted to sound an alarm ashereinafter described, and it will be seen that if the cord is burnedoff and the weight 14 dropped, the cord will tilt the tripping lever 16so as to permit the hook 17 to be disengaged, thus separating thesections of the Wire.

The wire 20 extends through openings 21 into all the adjacent rooms onthe floor, and of course by using suitable guide pulleys 22, it maybeextended through the rooms on several floors if desired, and the ends ofthe wire are secured to swinging weights 23 which are fulcrumed on thewall of the building, as shown in Fig. 2. The swinging weights 23 are inthe form of lovers, so that they act oppositely and exert a good pull onthe wire 20. In every room or at necessary points thewire 20 is providedwith stops 24, which engage a tilting trigger 25 which is fulcrumed onthe case 27 of an alarm 26, which trigger is arranged so as to engagethe fork 28 of the hammer 29 and hold the fork in close engagement withthe spurwheel 30, so that the latter cannot turn. This spur wheel may beturned by any of the usual spring devices which move until run down, andthe hammer is arranged to strike a gong 31 in the case.

- When a cord 10 is burned off or broken in any room, the weight 14drops, thus pulling on the cord 15and tilting the tripping lever l6'soas to release the hook 17 and permit the sepa-. ration of the wire 20*,and when this occurs, the

weights 23 pull on the ends of the wire so as to move it longitudinally,and the several triggers are tilted and released from the fork 28 sothat all the alarms begin to ring.

It will of course be understood that any suitable spring alarm may beused which permits the trigger 25 to be arranged so as to hold the alarmin a non-ringing position.

It will be seen from the above description that if the fire breaks outin any room, the cord 10 is sure to burn ofl? or at least be weakened soas to break, and this causes the weight connected therewith to drop andall the alarms connected with the wire 20*, which is thereby separated,are rung and hence the alarm is positive, quick and thorough.

Having thus described my invention, I claim as new and desire to secureby Letters Patent- 1. A fire alarm system, comprising a wire havingweights at the ends, tripping devices to separate the wire, alarms setin motion by the movement of the Wire, a weighted combustible cord hungon suitable supports, and means for releasing a tripping device by thedropping of the cord Weight, substantially as described.

2. A fire alarm system, comprising a'wire having weights at the ends, aseries of alarms arranged along the wire, triggers connected with thewire and with the alarms to set the same in motion, tripping devices tocause the separation of the wire, a weighted combustible cord arrangedon suitable supports, and a second non-combustible cord connected thetripping lever, alarms arranged along the .wire and set in motion by themovement thereof, a combustible cord arranged on supports and providedwith weights at one end, and connections between the weights and thetripping devices, substantially as described.

EUGENE P. MCCASLIN.

Witnesses:

J. D. RAHT, E1). PASOHALL.

